Children's Home run by London Borough of Hillingdon in Hillingdon

children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged Good at the full inspection. At this interim inspection, Ofsted judge that it has sustained effectiveness .

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people make excellent progress in education. They have a positive attitude to learning and staff work effectively in partnership with education services and the Virtual school team. Young people who do not have education placements have prompt access to home tutors to help them maintain a focus on learning and keep healthy routines. Staff are proactive and ensure that those young people not in education quickly secure placements that meet their needs. This creates a positive learning culture within the home and ensures that young people are engaged in constructive activities.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home has a diverse staff team who are very experienced in looking after young people from different cultures. They are particularly experienced in meeting the specific needs of young people who arrive in the United Kingdom unaccompanied. Young people who live in the home get on very well and support each other to settle in and learn to speak English. They enjoy living in the home and one young person said it ‘feels like a family’. They get on well with the staff and feel genuinely cared for. They described the Deputy Manager as being ‘like my uncle’. They also say that they like the food and that their rooms are comfortable. Young people move on positively and in a way that is consistent with their care plans. They often return to visit and make use of supportive relationships with staff.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people are generally well behaved and staff work effectively to model positive behaviour and help them learn to have consideration for others. Physical restraint is not used in the home and staff seldom use sanctions. Staff use more effective methods based upon a restorative justice approach. This helps young people develop an understanding of how behaviour can impact on other people and teaches them to be more socially aware.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people are healthy and the staff make sure that they access health care, and where necessary, specialist interventions from child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). The home also has a consultant CAMHS specialist who regularly consults with the team on any concerns about the emotional well-being of young people. This is particularly helpful to help staff understand the needs of young people who are often away from their country of birth and have experienced loss and trauma.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Two deputy managers and an experienced, stable staff team ably support the Registered Manager in her role. She has good oversight of the quality of care in the home and makes good use of feedback from the independent visitor. She pays attention to feedback from young people and staff in order to develop the service. She has strong links with local authority safeguarding forums and this means that she is able to present concerns as they arise to a multi-agency forum and ensure effective intervention to keep young people safe. Young people are seldom absent without permission .When they do go missing, staff take prompt action to locate them and to return home safely. While staff take appropriate action when young people are missing, pre incident risk assessments that are designed to ensure effective information sharing with the police are not always updated or completed with full information.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home currently operates an emergency bed and at times, admits young people from the local area who may have complex needs and present behaviour that is more challenging. Staff have the skills and experience to meet these needs and are able to manage emergency referrals without there being a significant negative impact on the young people who are living longer term in the home.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Despite good practice in all areas of safeguarding, the home does not always have effective risk assessment records in place to identify risk and specify risk management strategies. This creates a vulnerability in service provision, in that staff may overlook vulnerability factors, or not have the information to ensure a consistent approach to keeping young people safe.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Not all of the recommendations from the last inspection have been addressed in full. This includes improvements to individual risk assessments and for all staff to undertake training to safeguard young people against the risks of trafficking and radicalisation.

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Information about this children's home

The home is run and owned by a local authority. It is registered for up to 13 young people and specialises in looking after unaccompanied minors. They also have one bedroom that for emergency admissions.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

05/03/2015 Interim sustained effectiveness

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Statutory Requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person/s meets the Care Standards Act 2000, Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. The registered person(s) must comply with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

12. The protection of children standard.

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the protection of children standard, with particular reference to ensuring that individual risk assessments for children clearly identify vulnerability factors and risk management strategies. This also applies to the need to provide full information in pre-incident risk assessments in respect of children who may go missing from care.

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Requirement Due date

(2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— (a) that staff— (i) assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. 02.03.16

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):  Staff need the knowledge and skills to recognise and be alert for any signs that might indicate a child is in any way at risk of harm from trafficking and radicalisation. The registered person should ensure that skills in safeguarding are gained in these areas, refreshed and recorded in the homes workforce plan. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 43, paragraph 9.12).

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What the inspection judgements mean

At the interim inspection we make a judgement on whether the home has improved in effectiveness, sustained effectiveness, or declined in effectiveness since the previous full inspection. This is in line with the Inspection of children's homes: framework for inspection.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people living in the children's home. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the difference adults make to the lives of children and young people. They read case files, watched how professional staff work with children, young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care given to children and young people. Wherever possible, they talked to children, young people and their families. In addition the inspectors have tried to understand what the children's home knows about how well it is performing, how well it is doing and what difference it is making for the children and young people who it is trying to help, protect and look after. This inspection focused on the effectiveness of the home and the progress and experiences of children and young people since the most recent full inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service and to consider how well it complies with the Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. the guidance raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted, which is available from Ofsted's website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, workbased learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for looked after children and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Information about this inspection

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Information about this inspection

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Information about this inspection

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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